I Love Sambalpur
Sambalpur pronunciation (ସମ୍ବଲପୁର, सम्बलपुर) (Also pronouced as Samalapur) is a city in Sambalpur district in the Indian state of Orissa.
It lies at a distance of 321 km from the state capital Bhubaneswar. In the year 1876, Sambalpur was established as a municipality. It is currently the headquarters of Sambalpur district and the commercial capital of Kosal. After independence of India, many commercial and government establishments sprung up around Sambalpur making it the communication and administrative hub of Western Orissa. After the economic liberalisation of India in 1990 many industries opened up in and around this place, making this region as the industrial center of gravity of Orissa. Sambalpur is not only located on the Mumbai - Howrah rail route but it connects the rest of Orissa with western and northern India by rail. Sambalpur is a prime railway junction in Orissa with the headquarters of Sambalpur Railway Division located at this place. It is also a prime road junction with the crossing of NH-6, NH-42 and SH-10 through the city. Hirakud Dam, the longest earthen dam in the world and the largest artificial lake of Asia is situated here. Sambalpur is also the headquarters of Mahanadi Coalfields Limited, a subsidiary of Coal India Limited. Sambalpur is famous for Hirakud Dam, Sambalpuri Saree, Sambalpuri songs, Sambalpuri Dance, the Sitalsasthi Carnival, The Leaning Temple of Huma and Gandhi temple.
Sambalpur derives its name from Goddess Samaleswari, an incarnation of Shakti and the presiding deity of the Samaleswari Temple located in the city which is one of the major tourist attaction from all over Orissa and nearby states like Chattisgarh, Jharkhand and Madhyapradesh.
The King of Sambalpur Veer Surendra Sai, played a very important role in the freedom struggle of India which is still unrecognised. He led a revolution against the British East India Company even before Mangal Pandey in 1857. In 1849 Sambalpur came under the British rule by the application of Doctrine of lapse. Sambalpur has its own unique identity in-terms of its language, dress(Sari), dance, cuisine, culture, festivals, temples, heritage, songs, drama and music. This uniqueness has been there since centuries and its time tested aroma can be savoured in its daily life.
